Apparatus for producing laminated shims



July 27, 1943. E. L. YOUNG APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING LAMIVNATED SHIMS original Filed May 28, 195s 5 Sheets-Sheet l VUNG July 27, `1943 E. L. YoUNG 2,325,200

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCNG LAMINATED SHIMS l Original Filed May 28, 12938 3 Sheets-Sheet 2- hm mm i i 2 l i m N N n mm ww A ow Y www m L @m Nm 0m .1 A LJ o R h1. mq N m July 27, 1943. E. L, YOUNG APPARATUS FOR PRODUGING LAMINATED SHIMS original Filed May 28, 1938 :s sheets-sheet s Patented July 27, 1943 2,325,200 APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING LAMINATED SHIMS narle L. Young, Stamford, Conn.,

assignor to Lamimted Shim Company, Incorporated, Glenbrook,

Original application Ma 210,594, now Patent No. 11, 1941. Divided and ruary 25, 1941, Serial No. 380,412

2 Claims. This invention relates to improvements in apparatus and machines for the manufacture of shims of the laminated type in which the laminae may be peeled or stripped from the pack and is a division of my copending application Serial No. 210,594, led No. 2,234,214.

One of the principal objects of my invention is to provide an improved apparatus for producing a laminated shim having a plurality of laminae so bonded together that they will normally maintain a compact packed shape and will not curl or come loose from the pack under ordinary conditions of handling and installation and in which the laminae may be peeled or removed from the pack as desired for adjustment purposes.

Another object of my invention is to provide a machine or apparatus for manufacturing a laminated shim having steel laminae which provides for coating the laminae with a non-ferrous coating and then bonding the laminae together with a less adhesive. bonding agent which thinly and uniformly covers the laminae so that the shim pack will be of a thickness substantially equal to the multiple thickness of the respective laminae and so that the llaminae will be held with an adhesive force which is less than the cohesive force of the thin laminae, but which is adequate to prevent curling or accidental separation.

Another and more specific object of my invention is to provide an improved apparatus for producing a laminated shim having thin layers or laminations bonded to each other by a bonding agent which' is uniformly spread over the entire surface and subsequently partially squeezed May 28, 1938, now Patent out to iirmly bind the laminations together, such I bond being adequate to hold the laminations in position during forming of the shim as on a punch press whereby there is a minimum of handling of loose elements, the laminated shim stock being initially cleaned of all bonding material on the outer surfaces so that the nal shim is ready to use and will not adhereto the parts between which it is used.

Another object of my invention is to provide a machine for the eilicient manufacture of laminated shim stock from rolls of shim stock material, which will automatically produce the desired shim stock with a minimum amount of handling the material in the process of passing through the machine. i

Further objects and advantages of my invention will appear from the following description Conn., a corporation of Connecticut y 28, 1938, Serial N0. 2,234,214, dated March this application Febthereof taken in connection with the attached drawings, which illustrate a preferred form of embodiment of my invention, and in which:

Figure 1 is a Avertical section of one end of a machine for producing laminated shim stock.

Figure 2 is a vertical section with parts broken away of the mid-portion of the machine shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a vertical elevation of the remaining portion of the machine shown in Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a view on a smaller scale of the entire machine.

Figure 5 is a vertical section taken at right angles to the machine and along the line 5-5 of Figure 1 with parts broken away showing the acid applying apparatus.

Figure 6 is a vertical angles to Figure 5 and line 6-6 thereof.

section taken at right substantially along the Figure '7 is an end view of the knife structure.

Figure 8 is a side elevation of a part of the knife operating mechanism.

Figure 9 is a vertical section showing parts of the press.

Figure 10 is a vertical section taken at right angles to Figure 9 and substantially along the lines lll-l0 thereof.

Figure 11 is an elevation of a temporary stack of laminated shim stock.

Figure 12 is 'a diagrammatic side elevation of a buffer, and

FigureV 13 is a diagrammatic elevational view of a punch press. A 'f Laminated shims of the general type shown in Darrach Patent No. 1,933,050, granted October 31, 1933, have gone into widespread use in various mechanical elds and especially in connectionwith the adjustment of split bearings for internal combustion, Diesel and other engines, and for many'other purposes. Such shims, however, have been usually made copper alloys and more recently and to a smaller extent of bonded steel laminations. In attempting to make laminated steel shims, it has been found that a metallic bonding agent ,which isl adequate to prevent curling of the laminae and to hold the laminae in a pack during stamping, shipping and installation is often so strong that the steel laminae cannot be cleanly peeled from the pack without tearing of the laminae.

I have found that I can produce a highly satisfactory laminated steel shim by using a steel of thedesired thickness which may be as low as one-thousandth of an inch, by initially plating the steel with a non-ferrous coating and then of brass or other using a suitable bonding agent such as an alloy of the lead-tin series.` I find that of the nonferrous coatings copper applied by electro deposit from a suitable copper salt solution such as copper sulphate to be the best although other materials are available. lCopper bonds very well with steel and the copper plating will not peel from the steel and will serve as a suitable intermediate bonding agent between the steel and the solder, thereby permitting the steel laminae to be peeled from the shim without tearing. The steel used is preferably a hard or semi-hard cold rolled low carbon steel. y

With copper coated steel sheets, I can use different metallic binders, but I nd a high lead solder which has over 50% lead to be most suitable. 'I'his principal bonding agent holds the laminae together in a satisfactory manner and prevents curling or loosening of the laminae except by the desired peeling as with a knife when a change in size is required for adjustment purposes. Such a bonding agent, cooperating with the intermediate non-ferrous coating, has many of the characteristics of a brass shim and with the bond less than the cohesive strength of the steel laminae, the laminae may be freely peeled from the pack to leave a smooth and clean surface.

While the apparatus of the present invention will be described largely with reference to the production of laminated steel shims, it will be understood that the apparatus is also applicable to the production of laminated shims and laminated shim stock of other materials, such as brass, or the like,-and that such of the parts as aregclaimed as new provide improved operation in the manufacture of shim stock regardless of the type of metal it is made from.

Typical shims made in accordance with my process are shown in Figures 1 to 3 of my copending application Serial No. 210,594. These shims are adapted to be placed between bearing halves which are drawn tight by bolts which may pass through suitable holes or slots in the shim so that the shim thereby acts as a spacer for accurate spacing of the bearing to the shaft or rotating member and permits ready adjustment of the bearing by the removal of one or more laminae as required. With the steel shim there is far less tendency of the shim to become reduced in thickness or squeezed out and the bearing parts may be drawn together with a greatly increased pressure over that possible with brass shims. The steel shim will also remain of substantially uniform thickness to maintain the correct diameter for the bearing and adjustments may be more accurately carried out.

Laminated shims are preferably made as a. compact unit of separate laminae of the order of two-thousandths of an inch or more in thickness. Such thin laminations can be more uniformly compacted from roll stock due to the absence of grease and dirt and other foreign substances which I eliminate by continuous operation in the use of my machine. Usually there are five or more laminae of two-thousandths or three-thousandths of an inch forming a laminated shim stock of ten or flfteen-thousandths of an inch from which the individual shims are punched. Other combinations are possible as is obvious. In some cases, I find it desirable to use a rather heavy backing plate compacted with the thinner laminae. The shim may also have a babbitt tip as shown in Darrach Patent No. 1,933,- 050, above referred to. In any of these forms of shim, peeling one or more laminae will reduce the thickness for adjustment.

The machine in which such shim stock is made is preferably adapted for substantially automatic continuous formation of the shim stock which is a layer of bonded laminae ready for stamping from rolled strip material. It is, of course, to be understood that the machine represented is not the only one capable of forming laminated shim stock, but it is one which I find suitable for producing shim stock.

For the production of laminated steel shims, it is necessary to produce steel strip coated with a non-ferrous material. As I find that copper .plating is preferable, I may either purchase a copper plated steel strip, or I may take steel in rolled strip form generally represented at 20 in Figure 1 and pass it continuously through an electro-plating tank 2l containing a plating bath and having electrodes 22 and 22a, one of which makes a wiping contact with the strip to give the strip a flash coat of electro-plated material. For convenience, I have shown this diagrammatically as one part of my continuous machine, although it can be accomplished in an entirely separate machine if desired. Where laminated brass shims are being produced, the plating apparatus may be omitted from the machine.

The strip is next coated with solder or other suitable bonding agent, and in applying solder I pass the strip continuously through a fluxing and cleaning tank 23 and a solder bath tank 24, the solder in the tank 24 being maintained in a molten condition by means of burners 24a and the surplus solder being removed from the strip by wipers 24h. The solder is preferably of a high lead type as heretofore mentioned and it will coat both sides of the strip 20.

After the strip 20 is coated with solder, I find it desirable to cool it as by means of a fan 25 and to then coat it with a suitable material to prevent oxidation, such materials being applied to both sides of the strip as shown at 26 and as shown in greater detail in Figures 5 and 6. A convenient form of apparatus for applying such material includes a pair of blocks 26a and 26h of the suitable oxidizing inhibitor, such as stearic acid, which are Weighted by the weight 26c to contact, with the strip 2l) as it passes between the blocks. Various other means of applying such a coating will of course be apparent.

The coated strip is drawn through the various respective baths and from the original roll or spool by a continuous feeding means generally represented at 21 and consisting of a plurality of belts 28 and 29 which are of web type and carried by drums driven from the drive mechanism 30.

The strip of stock is so thin and fragile that feed-4 ing should be uniform and with the maximum surface contact.Y I obtain such uniformity by providing a table 3| mounted on suitable supports 32 on which the lower belt rests and I provide a tension roll 33 for the upper belt, such tension roll being spaced in triangular relation with the supports 32 of the table 3i so that there is adequate draft on the strip 20.

I also prefer to use the feeding means 21 as the source of operating power for the severing device generally represented at 34 in Figures Y'l and 8. One type of severing device which I find satisfactory includes a movable knife 35 which is reciprocated on the guide pins 36 by the links 31 from pivoted lever arms 38 moved from cams 39 which may be. on one set of the, belt driven drums. Such a severing device will periodically sever a xed length of strip and such strips will then fall by gravity onto the inclined table 40.

It is. desirable to build up a stack of laminated shim stock, such stack being generally represented at 4| in Figure 11. The stack pacting operation there is sucient solder on the inside laminae of the layers to fuse and adhere to the unsoldered outside laminae.

In order to prevent the respective groups of between the groups, I place spacers 43 between each group of laminated stock, such spacer preferably being one which is substantially incompressible, and not affected by the heat and pressure later applied in the process.

After I have built up a complete group shown as indicated at 4| in Figure 11, I then deposit he entire pack in the pressing envelope 48 by suitably rotating the shaft 40a.

may be carried out desired means.

` shims from sticking together by flow of solder Due to variations in temperature and speed of the solder bath, thiscoating may vary in thickness and in order to produce a usable shim, it is necessary to provide in the machine means to heat the respective elements, force out the surplus bonding agent and roll the shim stock to a uniform thickness which is done as follows.

After the shim pack 4| is placed in the envelops 48 as shown in Figure 3, the pivoted cover 50 of the envelope is moved into place to protect the shim pack from creeping as it passes through the press portion of the machine. The entire shim pack and envelope are then drawn `by the chain 49 through the oven 5| and into the press 52 which is adapted to squeeze out the heated solder from between the respective laminations. The chain may be driven by a suitable motor 68 and gearing, the motor being controlled as by controller 6| which will control the movement of the envelope in each direction or by a manually operated windlass.. The time of passage through the oven 5| is so regulated as to permit the pack of shim stock to reach the desired degree of heat.

The press 52 may be of any desired type but as shown, is provided with a plurality of xed rolls 53 and a plurality of adjustable rolls 54 which contact with the of hand wheels 55 carried on the shafts 5l and the springs 58 which abut collars 59. It is of course to be understood that the adjustable collars 59 are adapted to be loosened or tightened for the desired pressure and for convenience the hand wheels 56 are provided with quick acting cams so that the rolls 54 may be quickly released for the return movement of the envelope.

respects.

After the laminae have been heated and comacted to squeeze out surplus solder and removed from the envelope, the separate packs of shim are therefore not compressible within the loads to which they this respect.

While I have shown and described a preferred form of embodiment of laminated shim forming 1. A continuous lshim stock making machine of the class described comprising a plating tank, a solder tank and a severing device, a strip feeding device to feed a strip of the order of .002" in thickness through said plating tank and solder tank to uniformly plate and solder the f/ strip, severing means periodically operated by the feeding means to cut xed lengths of strip, and mea'ns to form a stack of multiple groups oi' strips, each group corresponding to the thickness of a shim.

2. A continuous shim stock making machine of I the class described comprising a plating tank, a cleaning tank, a solder tank, means to coat the EARLE n YOUNG.

and- 

